I WILL FOLLOW YOU INTO THE DARK
5x17

"Derek just quit."

Rowan's body twists around so fast, she's afraid she might've just given herself whiplash. She can't believe her ears.

She never in a million years would've thought Derek would leave his family at Seattle Grace.

"What?" Rowan didn't think she heard the dirty blonde haired resident correctly. "He what?!"

"He just quit," Meredith is pacing back and forth in front of the nurses station.

"What do you mean he just quit?" Rowan dropped whatever she was doing and rounded the desk, standing right in front of Meredith.

"He just— he was looking at how many patients he's saved versus how many he's lost and he just.. he said he was done. I— I don't know," Meredith squishes her bottom lip between her pointer finger and thumb.

"But why?" Rowan places her hands on either side of Meredith's shoulders.

"I don't know. I guess his patients death this morning really.." Meredith trailed off.

Ah, yes. The patient.

You may recall the mother with oncoming pre-eclampsia from last time.

Saddening news was she'd passed away this morning from something Derek hadn't caught during surgery, and he was now beating himself up over the fact.

"Well, he can't just leave," Rowan swallows nervously, her eyebrows pulling together in worry.

"Right," Meredith said, trying to convince herself and the blonde. "Right. He can't."

"He was just kidding," Rowan shrugs, both women trying to convince each other the man would be back by tomorrow.

"What are you two freaking out about?" Cristina looks at them weirdly, placing the chart she has on to top of the nurses station desk, Lexie following closely behind.

"Nothing," Rowan shrugs at the same time that Meredith says, "Derek!"

Cristina is leaning against the desk, her face deep in a patients chart, a pen gripped in her hand when she looks at the two, "So which is it? Derek or nothing?"

Lexie gives a concerned look to her 'wife', whom she's never seen look like this—scared and unsure and worried all at once.

Rowan reaches in her pocket, ferociously typing a text to Derek, a string of profanities and insults strewn throughout the paragraph.

Lexie gently tries taking the phone from the blonde, to which the blondes grip tightens.

"Hey—" Rowan makes a pouting face, which the intern finds absolutely adorable.

"Calm down," Lexie nods. "Whatever it was, maybe it happened for a reason. Maybe he needs a little bit of a break— time to cool off. If you were in his shoes, you wouldn't want anyone messaging you, would you?"

Rowan sighs, lessening the grip on the device, letting Lexie take it into her hold.

"Hey, let's take a walk," Lexie ghosts her hand over Rowan's back, softly guiding her in the direction opposite of Cristina and Meredith, ignoring their intruding gazes.

Cristina's expression is disgusted at how adorable they were, still not in on the fact that they weren't actually together. And Meredith's confused and happy. Happy knowing they aren't actually together but are getting along so well together, and confused because they are getting along too well.

"I can't believe this!" Rowan shakes her head.

"Don't work yourself up," Lexie soothes Rowan's nerves.

"You're right," Rowan blows out a breath. "Yeah, you're right. He should take his time."

"Yeah," Lexie nods, watching as Rowan's features calm themselves.

"Okay," Rowan turns to the younger woman. "Hey! I should be the one comforting you. I'm older."

"So what?" Lexie laughs. "That doesn't mean I can't comfort you when you need me— it."

Lexies cheeks set aflame at the tiny mistake, "I have to seem big and bad for my ego."

"Please tell me you're joking."

"I'm joking," Rowan confirms. Turning towards Lexie she asks, "How is your day going?"

Lexie blows out a big fist of air, a tired expression taking over her face.

"That bad?" Rowan stops in the middle of the hallway, pulling Lexie towards the wall, "How come? Talk to me."

Rowan leans against the wall as Lexie looks like she's weighing her options. She hesitates before speaking.

"Dr. Stevens has us following the patient— patient X?" Lexie looks at her wife to see if it rings a bell, and Rowan's face fills with recognition.

"Who?" Rowan pushes away from the wall, standing up straight.

"Who what? Who's the patient? Or who's following it?" Lexie asks.

"Who's following it," Rowan squints her eyes, watching carefully.

"Well, I don't actually know. I know I am, but I'm not sure if— if others are.." Lexie looks defeated as she admits this.

Rowan presses her lips together with a disappointed expression.

"Don't be mad at me—"

"I'm not mad at you, I'm furious at Izzie," Rowan reveals, beginning to walk in the direction of Izzie's last known location.

"Wait, wait, Ro," Lexie pulls her arm back, stopping the blondes movement. "I want to do this. I swear. It's fine. I'm having fun."

Rowan glances over her, seeing no sign of untruthfulness, "Okay."

💍

Rowan is more than halfway through the day before she even realizes Lexie still has her phone.

She doesn't find the girl and take the device back, no. But she does wonder about her best friend. Is he going to be okay?

Other surgeons had been known to break like this, but they never came back. And Derek had to come back. He was one of the best in the country— in the world.

She approaches the window to get some lab results for a mother, but the lab technicians seem to despise her, so she'd have to wait. The blonde took a seat on the chair outside the small window, pulling her crossword out of her pocket.

The book is starting to fall apart, and that's what Rowan loves about it most. It shows vulnerability just like a human.

Rowan just finishes one puzzle when Lexie comes strolling up towards the fetal surgeon.

She lifts her head, Lexie's eyes brightening when Rowan meets her gaze.

"Your phone," Lexie throws the phone into Rowan's lap.

"Thanks."

"What are you doing down here?" Lexie stands curiously, and it makes Rowan wonder why she cares so much. But that's a question for another day.

"Waiting for lab results," Rowan says with a bored expression, resulting in a raised eyebrow from Lexie. "They— the technicians don't seem to like me very much."

"What?" Lexie said, not believing her ears. "They love me!"

Rowan squints at Lexie, a fake scowl on her face.

"Here, what do you need? I'll rush it," Lexie offered.

"I've tried rushing it twelve times already," Rowan crosses her arms, her crossword book long forgotten.

"Hey, Lexie, what do you need?" One of the lab technicians smile up at here from the window.

Lexie looks at Rowan, waiting for an answer. When she doesn't get one she says, "I'm on Dr. Potter here's service, and between us, I really don't want to work through lunch. So, I don't know, could you maybe get that faster for me?"

"Of course," The guy smirks at Lexie, and sends a look towards Rowan.

"I think I understand why they don't like me now," Rowan stands, hitting the side of her leg with the paper book.

"What?" Lexie turns after the technician turns around.

"Nothing," Rowan shakes her head, starting to walk down the hall.

"What?" Lexie shouts now.

Rowan turns, walking backwards. "But since you're on my service, get those and take the results to the patient, Grey. See you later," The blonde winks, facing forward and making her way down the hall.

💍

Rowan's encounter with Lexie, reminded her of the whole Izzie thing.

She could see that something was off with the resident, she just didn't know what.

The attending took Izzie somewhere safe to talk, of Izzie's choosing, and Izzie caves. She tells her everything. Everything being...

okay so this chapter
isn't actually even based
off a single thing in this
episode it's all original
it's just the concept of
the episode. the two main
important things:
derek quits and we are
on a cliffhanger of what's
going on with izzie.. but
also we got a lot of rowan
and lexie!!!!